Product recovery apparatus and product recovery method

ABSTRACT

There is provided a product recovery apparatus in which mixture of cut wastes or a coolant into a receiver box is reduced and which can be disposed in the vicinity of a portion to be processed or in a processing chamber and which saves space and has high recovery rate of products. The product recovery apparatus for recovering the product from a machine tool for processing a material held by material hold means to produce the product, comprises: a product recovery tube for receiving the product; suction air generation means for bringing the product into the product recovery tube by suction of air; and a recovery container of the product disposed between the suction air generation means and product recovery tube. The recovery container may include a coolant reservoir portion for pooling a coolant in the recovery container, and the product recovered by the product recovery tube may be allowed to drop into the coolant in the coolant reservoir portion.

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present invention relates to a product recovery apparatus anda product recovery method in which after a product has been processed,the processed product is automatically recovered.

BACKGROUND TECHNIQUE

[0002] There have been machine tools, for example, automatic lathes forsupplying a longitudinal bar material through a through hole of a mainshaft from a back part of the main shaft, feeding the bar material in amain shaft axis line direction by each predetermined length, andcontinuously performing processing such as turning and grinding, or forsupplying a material for one product to the main shaft from a front partof the main shaft by a robot, and the like.

[0003] Among these, in the former machine tool, the tip end of the barmachine tool is projected from the tip end of the main shaft by apredetermined length, a tool rest or head stock is moved to performpredetermined processing, and thereafter a product is cut from the barmachine tool with tools such as a cut-off tool. Subsequently, thecut/separated product is recovered by a product recovery apparatus.

[0004]FIG. 16 shows a related art of the former machine tool, and is aschematic view of a main part of an automatic lathe including a productrecovery apparatus.

[0005] In FIG. 16, a head stock 2 is disposed on a base 4 of theautomatic lathe, and a main shaft 1 is rotatably supported on the headstock 2. The head stock 2 freely moves forwards and backwards along ascrew shaft 3 on the base 4 in a Z-direction which is the same directionas that of an axis line of the main shaft 1.

[0006] A support member 7 for supporting a guide bush 6 is disposedbefore the head stock 2 (on the left side of FIG. 16), and the tip endof a bar material B supplied through the through hole of the main shaft1 is supported by the guide bush 6. A tool rest such as a combteeth-shaped tool rest for holding a plurality of tools T is disposed inthe vicinity of the support member 7, so that the tools T such as acutting tool for performing predetermined turning and a cut-off tool forperforming cutting-off can be disposed in a processing position beforethe guide bush 6.

[0007] In the automatic lathe shown in FIG. 16, the head stock 2 canmove by the screw shaft 3. Moreover, the tip end of the bar material Bis projected from the guide bush 6, the head stock 2 is fed in theZ-direction, and the tool T is fed in an X-direction, so that the tipend of the bar material B is processed. After the processing ends, in avicinity position before the guide bush 6, the bar material B is cut offby the tool T such as the cut-off tool, and a product W is separatedfrom the bar material B. During the processing of the bar material B bythe tool T, a coolant supplied from a coolant nozzle 8 is spouted towardthe tool T and bar material B.

[0008] A product recovery apparatus 20 is disposed before the head stock2. Moreover, the apparatus 20 includes: a cylinder 21 including astretchable piston rod 21 a; a chute 22 for product recovery which movesforwards and backwards between a position right under a cover 9 disposedbelow the guide bush 6 and a retreat position far from the supportmember 7; a receiver box 25 for receiving/recovering the product W viathe chute 22; and a funnel-shaped member 24 disposed between thereceiver box 25 and chute 22. The chute 22 is attached to the tip end ofthe piston rod 21 a of the cylinder 21, and reciprocates/moves betweenthe position right under the cover 9 and the retreat position by drivingthe cylinder 21.

[0009] In the product recovery apparatus 20 constituted as describedabove, the cylinder 21 is driven to position the chute 22 right underthe cover 9 immediately before the product W is cut off. The chute 22receives the cut off and falling product W. As shown in FIG. 16, sincethe chute 22 is inclined toward the receiver box 25, the product slidesdown along the chute 22, and is transferred to the funnel-shaped member24. Subsequently, the product W drops and is recovered into the receiverbox 25 disposed under the funnel-shaped member 24.

[0010] Additionally, the product recovery apparatus 20 shown in FIG. 16has the following problem.

[0011] That is, since the coolant is continuously supplied from thecoolant nozzle 8 even at a cut-off time, the coolant is recoveredtogether with the product W into the receiver box 25 from the chute 22via the funnel-shaped member 24. Moreover, since the chute 22 andfunnel-shaped member 24 are disposed in a processing chamber of theautomatic lathe in an exposed state, a large amount of cut wastesgenerated during the processing enters the receiver box 25 together withthe coolant, and the cut wastes adhere to the chute 22 and funnel-shapedmember 24. Moreover, the products W are thereby mixed/recovered togetherwith the coolant and cut wastes in the receiver box 25, and there is adisadvantage that the receiver box 25 soon becomes full. Furthermore,the product W is entangled with or caught by the cut wastes in the chute22 and funnel-shaped member 24, the product W is mixed/recoveredtogether with the coolant and cut wastes in the receiver box 25, andthis causes a disadvantage that it takes a lot of trouble to recover theproduct W separately from the cut wastes.

[0012] Furthermore, to cut/form micro components such as clockcomponents, the product W flowing together with the coolant into thereceiver box 25 sometimes flows outside the receiver box 25 togetherwith the coolant running over the receiver box 25, and there is apossibility that recovery rate of the product W drops.

[0013] To solve the problem, for example, in Japanese Patent ApplicationLaid-Open No. 1997-94704, a product recovery apparatus is disclosedwhich includes a tube also having a guide function of preventing thecomponent from vibrating at a cut-off time and which uses the tube torecover the cut-off component by air suction.

[0014]FIG. 17 shows a schematic view of the product recovery apparatusdescribed in the Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1997-94704.

[0015] It is to be noted that mechanisms such as the head stock, mainshaft, tool, disposed in the automatic lathe, for processing the barmaterial B are the same as those of the automatic lathe shown in FIG.16, and therefore are denoted with the same reference numerals, anddetailed description thereof is omitted.

[0016] A product recovery apparatus 30 includes: a guide tube 31 forguiding the bar material B at the cut-off time so that the tip end ofthe material does not vibrate; an air tube 32 connected to the guidetube 31; a vacuum pump 36 for performing air suction; and a receiver box35 which receives the recovered product W.

[0017] The vacuum pump 36 is connected to the air tube 32 via a branchpipe 36 a branched halfway from the air tube 32. The guide tube 31 isformed of a cylindrical member of a metal, and supported on the sameaxis line as that of the main shaft 1 by a support member 33 fixed to atable 5 of the automatic lathe. Moreover, the tip end of the tube 31 ispositioned so that a part of the product W is inserted into the tip endof the guide tube 31 at the cut-off time of the product W from the barmaterial B.

[0018] Moreover, opening/closing means for closing an opening on anoutlet side of the air tube 32 is disposed on a product outlet side ofthe air tube 32, that is, on a receiver box 35 side so as to prevent airfrom being sucked on the product outlet side of the air tube 32, whenthe vacuum pump 36 is driven to perform the air suction.

[0019] The opening/closing means includes a cylinder 38, and anopening/closing member 39 attached to the tip end of a stretchablepiston rod 38 a of the cylinder 38. To recover the product W by the airsuction, the cylinder 38 is driven to close the opening of the air tube32 on the outlet side, and the opening/closing member 39 is opened afterthe suction of the product W, so that the product W is allowed to drop,and recovered in the receiver box 35.

[0020] According to the product recovery apparatus 30, since the productW cut off by the guide tube 31 is recovered, the amount of the coolantand cut wastes recovered together with the product W in the receiver box35 becomes remarkably small. Moreover, the product recovery apparatus 30can be disposed apart from a processed portion or outside the processingchamber, and therefore there is an advantage that influence of the cutwastes flied during the processing is not easily exerted.

[0021] However, in the product recovery apparatus described in theJapanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1997-94704, the branch tube 36a is branched halfway from the air tube 32 and connected to the vacuumpump 36, the cut wastes and coolant sucked from the guide tube 31 aretherefore sucked into the vacuum pump 36, and there is a problem that anoperation defect of the vacuum pump 36 is possibly caused. Moreover,with the product recovery apparatus 30 disposed outside the processingchamber, there is a problem that the automatic lathe is enlarged.

[0022] Furthermore, the product W recovered by the air suction collidesagainst the opening/closing member 39 at high speed, and therefore thereis a problem that the product W is possibly scratched and deformed.Moreover, in the structure, there is a gap between the opening/closingmeans and receiver box 35, therefore the product W which has forcefullyjumped into the receiver box 35 jumps out of the receiver box 35, andthere is a problem that the recovery rate of products drops.Additionally, a mechanism for opening/closing the opening/closing member39 is complicated, and there is a problem that an apparatus price rises.

[0023] It is to be noted that in addition to the above-describedJapanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1997-94704, a product recoveryapparatus described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos.1985-76901 and 19821-26947 is known. However, either constitution iscomplicated, the apparatus price is high, and it is difficult to disposethe apparatus in the processing chamber filled with the cut wastes andcoolant mist.

[0024] Moreover, there is a mode for grasping and conveying the productW by a chuck in the apparatuses described in the above-describedpublications, but this apparatus has a problem that it is difficult torecover the product depending on the shape of the product W.

[0025] On the other hand, in the latter machine tool for supplying thematerial for one product to the main shaft to process the material byrelative movement with the tool, discharging the processed product, andagain supplying the next material to repeat the processing, in order tosupply the material and discharge the product in a short time, it isgeneral to dispose a plurality of grasp means for supplying the materialand discharging the product on the tip end of a robot for conveyance(not shown) and to supply the material and discharge the product from aposition before the main shaft.

[0026] However, this method has the following problem. It is necessaryto dispose at least two or more grasp means separately for the materialsupply and for the product discharge on the tip end of the robot forconveyance, and therefore a conveyable weight of the robot forconveyance increases. Moreover, before the main shaft, the robot forconveyance is positioned in at least two positions, and it is necessaryto complicate the control and to secure a space around the main shaft.Furthermore, it is necessary to reduce a conveyance speed of the robotfor conveyance, and as a result a rise of equipment cost and decrease ofproductivity are caused.

[0027] The present invention has been developed in consideration of theabove-described problems, and an object thereof is to provide a productrecovery apparatus and a product recovery method which can be applied tovarious types of products and which can be disposed in the vicinity of aportion to be processed or in a processing chamber filled with cutwastes and mist of the coolant and by which the cut wastes are preventedfrom being mixed into a receiver box and recovered products areprevented from being damaged and which save space and have high recoveryrate of products.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

[0028] To achieve the object, according to the present invention, thereis provided a product recovery apparatus which recovers a product from amachine tool for processing a material held by material hold means andproducing the product, comprising: a product recovery tube for receivingthe product; suction air generation means for bringing the product intothe product recovery tube by air suction; and a recovery container ofthe product disposed between the suction air generation means and theproduct recovery tube.

[0029] It is to be noted that here the “material hold means” includesall means capable of holding the material, such as a type for supportingthe material like a bush, a type for grasping the material like a colletchuck and scroll chuck, a type of adsorbing the material like a magnetchuck and vacuum chuck, and a combination of these.

[0030] A coolant reservoir portion for pooling a coolant may be disposedin the recovery container. Moreover, the coolant reservoir portion mayinclude a discharge port of the coolant, and a valve for closing thedischarge port at an air suction time by the suction air generationmeans.

[0031] Furthermore, the product recovered by the product recovery tubemay be allowed to drop into the coolant pooled in the coolant reservoirportion.

[0032] Moreover, a product receiver for receiving the product isdisposed inside the recovery container, and the product receiver mayfreely be taken out of the recovery container.

[0033] According to another aspect of the present invention, at least aportion of a bottom of the product receiver is disposed apart from thebottom of the recovery container, and in cut wastes and dusts suckedtogether with the product, the cut wastes and dust smaller than theproduct are separated from the product, and precipitated on the bottomof the recovery container.

[0034] According to further aspect of the present invention, a roofportion of the recovery container is formed in an inclined shape, andthe air suction tube is connected to a vertex side of the roof portion.

[0035] According to still another aspect of the present invention, therecovery container is formed of a container upper part and containerlower part, and the container upper part is connected to the air suctiontube and product recovery tube, so that the product is recovered in thecontainer lower part.

[0036] The container lower part and container upper part are detachablefrom each other, and there may be disposed elevator means for relativelymoving up and down the container lower part or container upper part, andmovement means for relatively moving the container lower part orcontainer upper part in a transverse direction.

[0037] Moreover, there may be disposed a plurality of container lowerparts, location means for relatively moving the container lower parts orcontainer upper part and locating one of the container lower parts underthe container upper part, and elevator means for relatively moving upand down the container lower parts or container upper part.

[0038] According to still another embodiment of the present invention,there are disposed a plurality of the coolant reservoir portions and/orthe product receivers, and location means for moving and locating thecoolant reservoir portions and/or the product receivers intopredetermined positions.

[0039] According to the present invention, there is provided a productrecovery method of relatively moving a tool and material to performprocessing, and recovering a processed product after the processingends, comprising the steps of: positioning a product recovery tube forrecovering the product by suction air opposite to the product beingprocessed; disposing a recovery container of the product between suctionair generation means for generating the suction air and the productrecovery tube; inserting a portion of the product into the productrecovery tube, when processing is performed to release the product fromthe material hold means or to cut the product from the material; drivingthe suction air generation means simultaneously with the start of therelease of the product from the hold means or the cutting-offprocessing, or in a predetermined timing after the cutting-offprocessing starts; and stopping the suction air generation means, afterthe product released from the hold means or the product cut from thematerial is recovered in the recovery container.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

[0040]FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a main part of an automatic latheincluding a product recovery apparatus according to a first embodimentof the present invention;

[0041]FIG. 2 is a partially broken plan view seen from right above arecovery container of FIG. 1;

[0042]FIG. 3 is an explanatory view of a constitution and function of avalve for opening/closing a discharge port of coolant, (a) is asectional view showing a state in which a discharge port is closed, and(b) is a sectional view showing a state in which the discharge port isopen;

[0043]FIG. 4 is an explanatory view of the constitution of the recoverycontainer according to a second embodiment of the product recoveryapparatus of the present invention;

[0044]FIG. 5 is an explanatory view of the constitution of the recoverycontainer according to a third embodiment of the product recoveryapparatus of the present invention;

[0045]FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the function of the product recoveryapparatus of FIGS. 1 to 5;

[0046]FIG. 7 is an explanatory view of the constitution of the recoverycontainer according to a fourth embodiment of the product recoveryapparatus of the present invention;

[0047]FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the function of the product recoveryapparatus of FIG. 7;

[0048]FIG. 9 is a schematic side view of the product recovery apparatusaccording to a fifth embodiment of the present invention;

[0049]FIG. 10 is a plan view seen from a lower surface side of theproduct recovery apparatus of FIG. 9;

[0050]FIG. 11 is a diagram showing one example in which the productrecovery apparatus of FIG. 9 is disposed outside the automatic lathe;

[0051]FIG. 12 is a schematic side view of the product recovery apparatusaccording to a sixth embodiment of the present invention;

[0052]FIG. 13 is a plan view seen from the lower surface side of theproduct recovery apparatus of FIG. 12;

[0053]FIG. 14 is a schematic view of the product recovery apparatusaccording to a seventh embodiment of the present invention;

[0054]FIG. 15 is a schematic view of a main part of a machine toolaccording to an embodiment in which the product recovery apparatus ofthe present invention is disposed in a main shaft movement type ofmachine tool;

[0055]FIG. 16 is a schematic view of a main part of the automatic latheincluding the product recovery apparatus according to a conventionalexample of the present invention; and

[0056]FIG. 17 is a schematic view of the product recovery apparatusdisclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1997-94704according to the conventional example of the present invention.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

[0057] Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be describedhereinafter in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0058] [First Embodiment]

[0059] First, a first embodiment of the present invention will bedescribed with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3 and 6.

[0060]FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a main part of an automatic latheincluding a product recovery apparatus according to the first embodimentof the present invention.

[0061] A product recovery apparatus 100 includes: a recovery container120 disposed in a processing chamber of a machine tool such as anautomatic lathe; a product recovery tube 102 and air suction tube 104connected to the recovery container 120; and suction air generationmeans 103 including a vacuum pump and control valve to generate suctionair for recovering a product W via air suction tube 104, the recoverycontainer 120 and product recovery tube 102.

[0062] For the product recovery tube 102 and air suction tube 104, astretchable and bendable flexible tube which is not easily collapsed bya negative pressure by driving the suction air generation means 103 ispreferably used.

[0063] A linear tube 101 formed of a metal or resin separately from theproduct recovery tube 102 is attached to the tip end of the productrecovery tube 102. The tube 101 is supported on the same axis line asthe axis line of the main shaft 1 by a support member 105 disposed on atable 5. When the product W is cut from a bar material B as a material,a portion of the product W is positioned in a hole of the tube 101.

[0064] It is to be noted that at this time a half or more portion of theproduct W is preferably inserted into the hole of the tube 101 toprevent the cut-off product W from dropping.

[0065] The tube 101 is formed to such an extent that a hole innerdiameter is slightly larger than a maximum diameter of the product W.The tube 101 functions as a guide for inhibiting the tip end of theproduct W from swinging, when the product W is cut from the bar materialB. By the guide, it is possible to stably perform cut-off processing.Moreover, cut wastes R generated during the cut-off processing drops andis recovered in a cut waste recovery portion disposed below.

[0066] The recovery container 120 having a circular section shape has atwo-divided constitution including a container upper part 121 andcontainer lower part 122, the container upper part 121 is fixed to afixing portion of the table of the machine tool, and the container lowerpart 122 can be detached from the container upper part 121. To form therecovery container 120 in a sealable structure, a seal member such as apacking for keeping airtightness in the recovery container 120 isdisposed in a connection portion of the container upper part 121 andcontainer lower part 122.

[0067] A roof portion 121 a of the container upper part 121 is formed ina conical shape, so that the cut wastes R do not easily pile up on therecovery container 120 in the arrangement in the processing chamber ofthe machine tool.

[0068] Moreover, the air suction tube 104 is connected to the top of theroof portion 121 a, and opens in the vicinity of the top of the roofportion 121 a in the container upper part 121. Furthermore, the productrecovery tube 102 is connected to the side surface of the containerupper part 121 below the roof portion 121 a. Since the opening of theair suction tube 104 is disposed in a position higher than that of theopening of the product recovery tube 102, the coolant and cut wastes Rsucked into the recovery container 120 together with the product W viathe product recovery tube 102 are prevented from being sucked into theair suction tube 104. As a result, special dustproof countermeasures forthe suction air generation means 103 such as attachment of a filtermember of net and replacement of the filter member become unnecessary.

[0069]FIG. 2 is a plan view seen from right above the recovery container120, and a part of the container 120 is broken for convenience of thedescription.

[0070] As shown in FIG. 2, the product recovery tube 102 is connected tothe container upper part 121 in a position eccentric from the center ofthe recovery container 120, and the product W recovered by air suctionis sucked into the recovery container 120 from a tangent direction withrespect to an inner wall 121 b of the container upper part 121. In thiscase, an angle at a time when the product W collides with the inner wall121 b is small, and shock at the collision time is relaxed.

[0071] In the container lower part 122, a coolant reservoir portion 123is formed to pool the coolant sucked together with the product W intothe recovery container 120. In the coolant reservoir portion 123, aproduct receiver 125 is contained which can freely be inserted into orremoved from the coolant reservoir portion 123. The product W suckedinto the recovery container 120 via the product recovery tube 102 dropsin the coolant reservoir portion 123, and is recovered in the productreceiver 125.

[0072] Since the coolant pooled in the coolant reservoir portion 123functions as cushion at this time, the product W is prevented from beingscratched or deformed by collision, and a quality of the productprocessed with good dimensional precision can be maintained. Moreover,the coolant pooled in the coolant reservoir portion 123 can prevent theproduct W from being oxidized.

[0073] The product receiver 125 is constituted of a perforated member,and therefore fine cut wastes generated at a turning time, and dustssuch as micro particulate abrasive grains generated at a grinding timeare separated from the product and precipitated, when the product issucked/recovered or the product receiver 125 is removed. Examples of theperforated member include a meshed or perforated steel plate having asize such that the product does not pass through.

[0074] A discharge port 122 a is formed in the side surface of thecontainer lower part 122 for discharging an excess coolant from therecovery container 120, when the coolant recovered together with theproduct W exceeds a given amount. The coolant flowing out of thedischarge port 122 a is recovered via a coolant circulation tube 136. Atan air suction time, the inside of the recovery container 120 needs tobe kept to be airtight. For this, a valve 130 for closing the dischargeport 122 a at the air suction time is disposed in the recovery container120 of this embodiment.

[0075] In this case, when a distance to the discharge port 122 a from aninner bottom surface of the recovery container 120 is set to be large,and the coolant reservoir portion 123 is formed to be deep, a largenumber of recovered products can be contained, and collision of theproducts with one another in a recovered time can securely be avoided.

[0076] Moreover, for the valve 130 disposed in the discharge port 122 a,various types can be used as long as the discharge port 122 a is closedto keep the airtightness of the recovery container 120 at the airsuction time, the driving of the suction air generation means 103 isstopped to raise an inner pressure of the recovery container 120 to thesame pressure as outside air pressure or to pressure higher than theoutside air pressure, and then the discharge port 122 a can be opened bythe coolant. A solenoid valve opened/closed by a timing signal outputtedwith the driving and stopping of the suction air generation means 103,or a mechanical type for opening/closing the valve by a pressuredifference exerted on a valve body may also be used.

[0077] As shown in FIG. 3, the valve 130 of this embodiment includes: avalve body 131 attached to the side surface of the container lower part122; a ball-shaped valve body 133 which is disposed in the valve body131 and which freely moves; and a valve body receiver 134 for holdingthe valve body 133 so that the valve body 133 freely moves between aposition for opening the discharge port 122 a and a closing position. Acoolant passage 135 connected to the discharge port 122 a is formed in aside portion of the valve body 131, and a hole 131 a connected to thecoolant circulation tube 136 is formed in a bottom part. Moreover, ahole 131 b connected to the outside is formed in the upper part of thevalve body 131. In this case, the upper part of the valve body 131 isreleased and the coolant smoothly drips via the hole 131 a.

[0078] As shown in FIG. 3(a), when the suction air generation means 103is driven and the pressure in the recovery container 120 is lower thanan external pressure, the valve body 133 is sucked toward a coolantpassage 135 side to close the discharge port 122 a.

[0079] Moreover, as shown in FIG. 3(b), when the suction air generationmeans 103 stops and the pressure inside the recovery container 120becomes the same as the outside air pressure, the valve body 133 ispushed by a weight of the valve body 133 itself and the pressure of thecoolant applied to the valve body 133, and detached from the coolantpassage 135 to open the discharge port 122 a. It is to be noted thateven with the inner pressure of the recovery container 120 higher thanthe outside air pressure, the valve body 133 naturally moves to open thedischarge port 122 a.

[0080] In this case, the coolant running over the coolant reservoirportion 123 flows out to the coolant circulation tube 136 via thedischarge port 122 a and is recovered.

[0081] According to the valve 130 constituted as described above, it isunnecessary to dispose a driving apparatus for opening/closing the valvebody 133, and there is an advantage that a simple and inexpensiveapparatus can be provided.

[0082] Moreover, as not shown, air jet means for spouting compressed airtoward a port portion of the tube 101 may also be disposed. When the airjet means is disposed in this manner, and air is spouted to the productrecovery tube 102 simultaneously with the stopping of the air suction,the inner pressure of the recovery container 120 is set to be higherthan the outside air pressure, the coolant or cut wastes sticking to theinside of the product recovery tube 102 are blown off, and the inside ofthe tube is cleaned.

[0083] [Description of Recovery Method]

[0084] A product recovery method of the present invention will next bedescribed together with the function of the product recovery apparatusconstituted as described above with reference to FIG. 6.

[0085]FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an operation of the product recoveryapparatus 100 in one cycle from when the bar material B projected fromthe guide bush 6 by a predetermined length starts to be processed untilthe product W is cut from the bar material B and recovered.

[0086] While the bar material B is projected from the guide bush 6 bythe predetermined length, a chuck of the main shaft (not shown) isclosed to grasp the bar material B. Moreover, the coolant is spouted toa portion to be processed from the coolant nozzle 8, and a series ofoperation is started (step S10).

[0087] Subsequently, the tool T such as a cutting tool is positioned ina processing position, and performs predetermined processing by movementof the head stock 2 in a Z-axis direction and movement of the tool T inthe X-direction (step S11).

[0088] When the cutting processing ends (step S12), the tool T forcutting-off such as a cut-off tool is positioned in the processingposition (step S13), and cutting-off processing is started (step S14).

[0089] It is to be noted that at this time the tip end of the product Wis inserted into the hole of the tube 101 and guided and therefore theproduct W is inhibited from swinging by a force applied to the product Wat the cutting-off time.

[0090] When a cut depth of the tool T reaches a predetermined dimension(step S15), the suction air generation means 103 starts air suction(step S16).

[0091] When the cutting-off is completed (step S17), and the product Wis cut from the bar material B, the product W is passed through the tube101 and product recovery tube 102 and sucked into the recovery container120.

[0092] Since the sucked product W collides with the inner wall 121 b ofthe recovery container 120 at a small angle substantially from thetangent direction, impact at the collision time of the product W withthe inner wall 121 b is reduced, and the product W is prevented frombeing scratched or deformed. The product W drops into the coolantreservoir portion 123, and is recovered by the product receiver 125, andthe impact by the falling is absorbed by the coolant pooled in thecoolant reservoir portion 123.

[0093] When the cutting-off of the product W is completed and theproduct W is recovered in the recovery container 120, the suction airgeneration means 103 stops the air suction (step S18).

[0094] Subsequently, simultaneously with the stopping of the air suctionby the suction air generation means 103, compressed air is spoutedtoward the tip-end opening of the tube 101 from the air jet means (notshown) (step S19). The compressed air cleaning the inside of the productrecovery tube 102 reaches the inside of the recovery container 120,raises the pressure of the inside of the container to open the dischargeport 122 a, and discharges the coolant (step S20).

[0095] A series of operation ends as described above (step S21).Thereafter, the above-described operation is repeated.

[0096] In this manner, for the product recovery apparatus of the presentinvention, it is possible to recover the product under remarkably simplecontrol.

[0097] When a given number of products W are recovered by the productreceiver 125, the container lower part 122 is removed from the containerupper part 121, and the product W is taken out of the coolant reservoirportion 123 together with the product receiver 125. In this case, whilethe recovery container 120 is mounted on the machine tool, the productreceiver 125 is simply removed, and then it is conveniently possible totake the product W out of the recovery container 120.

[0098] Since the suction air sucks not only the product W but alsoambient air, a slight amount of the cut wastes R or the coolant issucked into the recovery container 120. However, the product receiver125 is formed of the perforated member. Therefore, when the productreceiver 125 is taken out of the container lower part 122, the coolantor cut wastes R are separated from the product and pooled in an innersurface bottom of the container lower part 122.

[0099] The coolant drops into the coolant reservoir portion 123 and ispooled. When a given amount is exceeded, the coolant is discharged viathe discharge port 122 a. Moreover, the cut wastes R drop and aredeposited in the coolant reservoir portion 123. When the coolant and thecut waste R are pooled to a certain degree, the container lower part 122is removed from the container upper part 121 and the coolant reservoirportion 123 is washed and discarded.

[0100] [Second Embodiment]

[0101] A second embodiment of the present invention will next bedescribed with reference to FIG. 4.

[0102] The second embodiment is different from the first embodiment onlyin a recovery container 220, and another constitution is the same asthat of the first embodiment. Therefore, common parts and members aredenoted with the same reference numerals, and detailed descriptionthereof is omitted.

[0103]FIG. 4 is an explanatory view of the constitution of the recoverycontainer according to the second embodiment of the product recoveryapparatus of the present invention.

[0104] The recovery container 220 includes a container upper part 221and container lower part 222, and the container upper part 221 includesa conical roof portion 221 a. Moreover, the air suction tube 104 isconnected to a vertex of the roof portion 221 a, and the productrecovery tube 102 is connected to the side surface of the containerupper part 221.

[0105] A coolant reservoir portion 223 in which the coolant is pooled isformed in the container lower part 222, and a basket-shaped productreceiver 225 is disposed above a discharge port 222 a for dischargingthe coolant. The product W sucked in the recovery container 220 from theproduct recovery tube 102 by air drops and is recovered in the productreceiver 225.

[0106] The coolant and cut wastes R sucked in the recovery container 220by air are passed through the basket-shaped product receiver 225 anddrop into the coolant reservoir portion 223. For the product recoveryapparatus of this embodiment, the coolant is separated from the productW at a recovery time, and therefore the apparatus is effective for theproduct W which is not easily scratched or deformed.

[0107] [Third Embodiment]

[0108] A third embodiment of the present invention will next bedescribed with reference to FIG. 5.

[0109] The third embodiment is different only in a recovery container320, and another constitution is the same as that of the firstembodiment. Therefore, the common parts and members are denoted with thesame reference numerals, and the detailed description thereof isomitted.

[0110]FIG. 5 is an explanatory view of the constitution of the recoverycontainer according to the third embodiment of the product recoveryapparatus of the present invention.

[0111] The recovery container 320 includes a container upper part 321and container lower part 322, and the container upper part 321 includesa roof portion 321 a inclined in one direction. Moreover, the airsuction tube 104 is connected to the vertex of the roof portion 321 a,and the product recovery tube 102 is connected to a middle portion ofthe roof portion 321 a. Both the product recovery tube 102 and airsuction tube 104 are connected to the recovery container 320 so that thetubes are directed in a vertical direction. Moreover, even in theembodiment, an opening 104 a of the air suction tube 104 is positionedhigher than an opening 102 a of the product recovery tube 102.

[0112] A coolant reservoir portion 323 in which the coolant is pooled isformed in the container lower part 322, and a product receiver 325 isdisposed in a slightly floated state from a bottom of the coolantreservoir portion 323.

[0113] The product W sucked in the recovery container 320 from theproduct recovery tube 102 by air drops and is recovered in the productreceiver 325. The coolant and cut wastes R sucked in the recoverycontainer 320 by air are passed through the basket-shaped productreceiver 325 and drop into the coolant reservoir portion 323. Theproduct W sucked into the recovery container 320 directly drops into theproduct receiver 325, but the impact is relaxed by the coolant of thecoolant reservoir portion 323, and there is no possibility that theproduct W is scratched or deformed.

[0114] In the second and third embodiments shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, theproduct receivers 225, 325 are supported by protrusions 222 b, 322 bdisposed in the container lower parts 222, 322 to form a precipitatespace of the cut wastes R between the product receivers 225, 325 andcontainer inner surface bottom. However, the space for precipitating thecut wastes R may also be formed by a concave portion formed in thecontainer inner surface bottom or by legs attached to the productreceivers 225, 325. Since the cut wastes R tend to gather in a middle ofthe container inner surface bottom, the space for precipitate may alsobe formed only in the vicinity of the middle portion.

[0115] It is to be noted that the functions in the product recoveryapparatuses of the second and third embodiments described with referenceto FIGS. 4 and 5 are the same as the function of the product recoveryapparatus of the first embodiment described with reference to FIG. 6,and therefore the description thereof is omitted.

[0116] [Fourth Embodiment]

[0117] A fourth embodiment of the present invention will next bedescribed with reference to FIG. 7.

[0118]FIG. 7 is an explanatory view of the constitution of the recoverycontainer according to the fourth embodiment of the product recoveryapparatus of the present invention.

[0119] A recovery container 420 includes a container upper part 421 andcontainer lower part 422.

[0120] The container upper part 421 includes a roof portion 421 ainclined toward one side. An inner container 424 having a bottomedcylindrical shape is disposed in the container upper part 421, and theair suction tube 104 connected to the vicinity of the vertex of the roofportion 421 a extends through an upper part of the inner container 424.

[0121] Moreover, the product recovery tube 102 extends through the sidesurface of the inner container 424 from the side surface of thecontainer upper part 421. Even in the embodiment, in the inner container424, the opening 104 a of the air suction tube 104 is positioned abovethe opening 102 a of the product recovery tube 102.

[0122] A shield plate 421 b in which a hole is formed in a portioncorresponding to an opening 424 a of the inner container 424 is attachedto the bottom of the container upper part 421 connected to the containerlower part 422, and air of an ambient space portion 421 c of the innercontainer 424 is prevented from flowing into the container lower part422.

[0123] A coolant reservoir portion 423 in which the coolant is pooled isformed in the container lower part 422. Moreover, a rotary table 429which is freely located/rotated by a rotation shaft 427 is disposed, anda basket-shaped product receiver 425 is held in a position higher thanthat of a discharge port 422 a of the coolant. A plurality of productreceivers 425 are laid on the rotary table 429, and the rotary table 429performs location/rotation together with the rotation shaft 427, so thatthe product receivers 425 are positioned right under the inner container424 in order.

[0124] A function of the product recovery apparatus constituted asdescribed above and a recovery method of the product by the productrecovery apparatus will be described with reference to FIG. 8.

[0125]FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the operation of the productrecovery apparatus in one cycle from when the bar material B projectedfrom the guide bush 6 by the predetermined length starts to be processeduntil the product W is recovered.

[0126] In the flowchart of FIG. 8, the steps S10 to S20 are the same asthe steps of the above embodiment described with reference to FIG. 6,and therefore the detailed description is omitted here.

[0127] The number of products W recovered in one product receiver 425can be judged from the number of processed products W counted by acontrol apparatus of the machine tool. For example, the number ofprocessed products W in a change time of the previous product receiver425 may be subtracted from the presently counted number. Moreover, whenthe number of products W in the product receiver 425 reaches apredetermined number (step S21), a driving member (not shown) is drivento rotate the rotary table 429, and the next product receiver 425 ispositioned right under the inner container 424 (step S22).

[0128] It is to be noted that for timing of location control of theproduct receiver 425, control based on the processing end of thepredetermined number of products by program is not limited, and thecontrol can be performed at various timings such as a change of aprocessing object product, change of processing program, segmentation bydimension change of the processed product by wears of the tool, andtrouble generation of the machine tool and tool such as detection ofoverload of rotation of the main shaft or feed in the axis linedirection and tool automatic change by tool breakage.

[0129] A series of operation ends as described above (step S23).Thereafter, the above-described operation is repeated.

[0130] According to the embodiment, when a plurality of productreceivers are located/rotated and successively changed, a large numberof products can be recovered, and the embodiment is suitable for along-time continuous unmanned operation. Moreover, it is possible totake the product recovered in one product receiver out of the machinetool without stopping the processing.

[0131] [Fifth Embodiment]

[0132] A fifth embodiment of the present invention will next bedescribed with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10.

[0133]FIG. 9 is a schematic side view of the product recovery apparatusaccording to the fifth embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 10is a plan view seen from a lower surface side of the product recoveryapparatus of FIG. 9.

[0134] In the embodiment a recovery container 520 is constituted of acontainer upper part 521 and container lower part 522 which canvertically be separated. Moreover, a product recovery apparatus 500includes elevating/moving means 550 for lowering the container lowerpart 522 with respect to the container upper part 521 and moving thepart in a horizontal direction so that the product is easily taken out.

[0135] The container upper part 521 is supported by a support plate 555attached to a fixing portion of the base 4 (see FIG. 1) of the automaticlathe. The air suction tube 104 is connected to the vertex of thecontainer upper part 521, and the product recovery tube 102 is connectedto the side surface of the container upper part 521 below the airsuction tube 104. Moreover, the valve 130 is disposed in the containerlower part 522 similarly as the above embodiment.

[0136] The elevating/moving means 550 includes: a guide sleeve 556supported by the support plate 555 in the vicinity of the containerupper part 521; a shaft 552 inserted through a through hole 556 b of avertical direction of the guide sleeve 556; handles 551 disposed on theupper end of the shaft 552; and a spring 553, fitted in the shaft 552between the handles 551 and support plate 555, for constantly urging theshaft 552 upwards.

[0137] The shaft 552 is guided through the through hole 556 b of theguide sleeve 556, and freely moves upwards/downwards and rotates. Thecontainer lower part 522 is attached to the lower end of the shaft 552via an attachment member 559. Therefore, the container lower part 522freely moves upwards/downwards and rotates together with the shaft 552.

[0138] A groove 556 a is formed in a vertical direction halfway to aheight position from the lower end in an outer peripheral surface of theguide sleeve 556. Moreover, an engagement pin 557engageable/disengageable with respect to the groove 556 a is disposed inthe outer peripheral surface of the shaft 552. When the handles 551 areoperated to position the engagement pin 557 in the groove 556 a, thecontainer lower part 522 is positioned substantially right under thecontainer upper part 521, and attached to the shaft 552. The attachmentmember 559 may be attached to the shaft 552 via bolts, so that anattachment position of the container lower part 522 with respect to theshaft 552 can finely be adjusted.

[0139] According to the above-described mode, while the handles 551 areoperated, the engagement pin 557 is positioned in the groove 556 a, theengagement pin 557 is engaged with the groove 556 a, and the shaft 552is raised. Then, the container lower part 522 accordingly moves upwardsin a vertical direction toward the container upper part 521 and engageswith the container upper part 521, while the movement (rotation) of thehorizontal direction is regulated.

[0140] The container lower part 522 is pressed onto the container upperpart 521 by an urging force of the spring 553. During the processing ofthe product, the container upper part 521 and container lower part 522are firmly pressed onto each other by a pressure difference between theair pressure and outside air pressure in the recovery container 520 bythe suction air. This prevents a disadvantage that the container lowerpart 522 is detached from the container upper part 521 during theoperation of product recovery from occurring.

[0141] It is to be noted that an engagement convex portion 560 to beengaged in an opening 522 a of the container lower part 522 may beformed in a lower end of the container upper part 521 engaged with theupper end of the container lower part 522. Moreover, in the outerperipheral surface of the engagement convex portion 560, an oil seal 561may be disposed so as to closely contacts an inner peripheral surface ofthe opening 522 a, when engaged with the opening 522 a of the containerlower part 522. Thereby, air or coolant can be prevented from leakingfrom a gap between the engagement convex portion 560 and the innerperipheral surface of the opening 522 a.

[0142] To remove the product from the container lower part 522, the airsuction is stopped, the handles 551 are operated, and the containerlower part 522 is pushed up against the urging force of the spring 553.Thereby, the container lower part 522 is separated from the containerupper part 521. Moreover, when the engagement pin 557 is detached fromthe lower end of the groove 556 a, the shaft 552 is rotated, and thecontainer lower part 522 is moved in the horizontal direction withrespect to the container upper part 521. Thereby, as shown by a virtualline in the plan view of FIG. 10, the container lower part 522 isbrought in an offset state in the horizontal direction from thecontainer upper part 521, and the product is easily taken out.

[0143] To further easily remove the product from the container lowerpart 522, a basket-shaped product receiver 525 may be inserted into thecontainer lower part 522. For example, a string-shaped handle 526 havingflexibility may be attached to the upper end of the product receiver525. Thereby, the product recovered in the container lower part 522 canbe taken out at once, and the coolant pooled in the container lower part522 can easily be separated from the product.

[0144] It is to be noted that the groove 556 a linearly extending in thevertical direction has been described above. However, when a middleportion of the groove 556 a is bent in an oblique direction, thecontainer lower part 522 is lowered, and can be moved with respect tothe container upper part 521 in the horizontal direction.

[0145] The product recovery apparatus 500 constituted as described abovemay be disposed in the processing chamber of the automatic lathe, butmay also be disposed independently of the automatic lathe outside theautomatic lathe.

[0146]FIG. 11 is a diagram showing one example in which the productrecovery apparatus 500 is disposed outside the automatic lathe.

[0147] As shown in FIG. 11, a case 510 is detachably attached to theoutside of a main body cover 10 for shielding the processing chamber ofthe automatic lathe, and the product recovery apparatus 500 is containedin the case 510.

[0148] An openable/closable lid 511 is disposed on the upper part of thecase 510, and a handle 512 is disposed on the lid 511 so that theproduct recovery apparatus 500 can be carried together with the case510.

[0149] Moreover, the support plate 555 is fixed to the inner peripheralsurface of the case 510, and the recovery container 520 is attached tothe support plate 555. The product recovery tube 102 is passed throughthe hole formed in the lower part of the case 510 from the main bodycover 10 of the automatic lathe, and connected to the side surface ofthe container upper part 521. Moreover, the air suction tube 104 ispassed through the hole and connected to the vertex of the containerupper part 521. Therefore, the product W processed in the processingchamber of the automatic lathe is recovered in the container lower part522 outside the main body cover 10 via the tube 101 and product recoverytube 102 by the suction air.

[0150] When the product W is taken out, the lid 511 of the case 510 isopened, the handle 551 is operated in the above-described procedure, andthe container upper part 521 is separated from the container lower part522.

[0151] Since the product recovery apparatus of the present invention canbe formed to be small and compact in this manner, it is possible todispose the apparatus not only in the processing chamber of the machinetool such as the automatic lathe but also in arbitrary appropriatepositions such as the outside of the machine tool.

[0152] [Sixth Embodiment]

[0153] A sixth embodiment of the present invention will next bedescribed with reference to FIGS. 12 and 13.

[0154]FIG. 12 is a schematic side view of the product recovery apparatusaccording to the sixth embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 13is a plan view seen from the lower surface side of the product recoveryapparatus of FIG. 12.

[0155] For a product recovery apparatus 600 of the embodiment, similarlyas the product recovery apparatus 400 of the fourth embodiment, aplurality of product receivers are located/rotated and successivelychanged, thereby a large number of products can be recovered, and theapparatus is suitable for a long-time continuous unmanned operation.Moreover, the product recovered in one product receiver can be taken outof the apparatus without stopping the processing.

[0156] The product recovery apparatus 600 of the sixth embodiment isdifferent from the product recovery apparatus 400 of the fourthembodiment in that a plurality of product receivers 425 are disposedinside the container lower part 422 in the product recovery apparatus400 of the fourth embodiment and the product receiver 425 islocated/rotated inside the container lower part 422 and that the productrecovery apparatus 600 of the sixth embodiment includes a plurality ofcontainer lower parts 622 detachable from a container upper part 621 andthe container lower parts 622 are successively located/rotated torecover the product W.

[0157] As shown in FIG. 12, a recovery container 620 includes thecontainer upper part 621 and container lower part 622 which canvertically be separated. The container upper part 621 is supported by asupport plate 655 attached to the fixing portion such as the base of theautomatic lathe, and the container lower part 622 is disposed such thatthe part 622 can move upwards/downwards and can be located/rotated withrespect to the container upper part 621.

[0158] Similarly as the above embodiment, the product recovery tube 102is connected to the side surface of the container upper part 621, andthe air suction tube 104 is connected to the vertex of the containerupper part 621. Moreover, in this embodiment, the valve 130 forrecovering the coolant is disposed in the lower end of the containerupper part 621.

[0159] A rotation shaft 627 is disposed in the vicinity of the containerupper part 621 in the support plate 655. Moreover, a rotary table 629for locating/rotating the container lower part 622 is attached to thelower end of the rotation shaft 627.

[0160] A plurality of (four in this embodiment) holder holes 629 a areformed in the rotary table 629, and the container lower part 622 isinserted and held in each holder hole 629 a. That is, a flange portion622 b jutting outside is formed in a peripheral edge of an opening 622 aof the container lower part 622, the flange portion 622 b is engagedwith the hole peripheral edge of the holder hole 629 a of the rotarytable 629, and thereby the container lower part 622 isattachably/detachably held by the rotary table 629.

[0161] Location/rotation means for locating/rotating the rotary table629 includes: a motor 631 attached to the support plate 655; adriving-side pulley 632 b attached to the rotation shaft of the motor631; a follower-side pulley 632 a attached to the rotation shaft 627;and a timing belt 633 wound around these pulleys 632 a, 632 b.

[0162] When the motor 631 drives and rotates the rotation shaft by apredetermined angle, the rotation is transmitted to the rotation shaft627 and rotary table 629 via the driving-side pulley 632 b, timing belt633, and follower-side pulley 632 a.

[0163] Moreover, a cylinder 651 is attached to the vicinity of thecontainer upper part 621 via brackets and directed downwards in thesupport plate 655. Moreover, a guide sleeve 656 is attached to thesupport plate 655, including a through hole concentric with a piston rod651 a of the cylinder 651 which can move forwards and backwards. A shaft652 which can move upwards/downwards is inserted into the guide sleeve656, and a head of the shaft 652 is disposed opposite to the piston rod651 a. The shaft 652 is constantly urged upwards by a spring 653 fittedinto a large-diameter hole of the guide sleeve 656. Moreover, in theouter peripheral surface of the guide sleeve 656, a guide groove 656 ais formed in the axis line direction from the lower end, and anengagement pin 657 formed on the side surface of the shaft 652 isconstantly engaged with the guide groove 656 a. The shaft 652 isregulated not to rotate, when the engagement pin 657 is constantlyengaged with the guide groove 656 a.

[0164] An arm-shaped attachment member 659 extending in the horizontaldirection is attached to the lower end of the shaft 652, and anengagement member 658 including an engagement groove 658 a is attachedto the tip end of the shaft 652. On the other hand, a disc-shapedengaged portion 623 which can be engaged with the engagement groove 658a of the engagement member 658 is disposed in the bottom portion of thecontainer lower part 622.

[0165] The engagement groove 658 a of the engagement member 658 isdisposed on a movement path L of the engaged portion 623 with thelocation/rotation of the container lower part 622, and the engagedportion 623 is inserted into the engagement groove 658 a, when thecontainer lower part 622 moves to the position right under the containerupper part 621.

[0166] The recovery procedure of the product by the product recoveryapparatus constituted as described above will next be described. It isto be noted that the main procedure including the start of theprocessing of the product and the location/rotation of the containerlower part 622 is substantially the same as the procedure of FIG. 8described in the fourth embodiment, and therefore the detaileddescription thereof is omitted.

[0167] Prior to the location/rotation of the rotary table 629, thecylinder 651 is driven to push down the shaft 652 with the piston rod651 a. Thereby, the engagement groove 658 a of the engagement member 658is positioned on the movement path L of the engaged portion 623.

[0168] Subsequently, the motor 631 is driven to locate/rotate the rotarytable 629, and the container lower part 622 is located in the positionright under the container upper part 621. Thereby, the engaged portion623 enters the engagement groove 658 a, and a state in which engagementmember 658 can be engaged with the engaged portion 623 is obtained.

[0169] When the cylinder 651 is driven, and the piston rod 651 a iscontracted and retreated in this state, the shaft 652 moves upwards bythe urging force of the spring 653, and the attachment member 659 pushesupwards the container lower part 622. Moreover, a fit convex portion 660of the container upper part 621 is inserted into the opening 622 a ofthe container lower part 622, and the container lower part 622 is fittedinto the container upper part 621 in a sealed state by an oil seal 661.

[0170] Thereafter, the air suction is started, and the processing of theproduct is started. Even in this embodiment, similarly as the fifthembodiment, the container lower part 622 is prevented from beingdetached from the container upper part 621 during the recovery of theproduct by the air pressure difference by the air suction.

[0171] The number of products W recovered in one container lower part622 can be judged from the number of processed products W counted by thecontrol apparatus of the machine tool. When the number of products W inthe container lower part 622 reaches the predetermined number, thecylinder 651 is driven to move downwards the container lower part 622.The container lower part 622 is forcibly pushed downwards, when theengagement member 658 engages with the engaged portion 623. Thereafter,in the above-described procedure the rotary table 629 islocated/rotated, and the next container lower part 622 is positionedright under the container upper part 621.

[0172] The product W can easily be taken out of the product recoveryapparatus 600, when the container lower part 622 is detached from therotary table 629. Of course, the basket-shaped product receiver may bedisposed in each of the container lower parts 622 similarly as theabove-described embodiment, and the product W may be taken out of thecontainer lower part 622 together with the product receiver.

[0173] It is to be noted that for the timing of the location control ofthe container lower part 622, as described also in the fourthembodiment, the control based on the processing end of the predeterminednumber of products by the program is not limited. The control can beperformed in various timings such as the change of the processing objectproduct, change of processing program, segmentation by dimension changeof the processed product by the wears of the tool, and troublegeneration of the machine tool and tool such as detection of overload ofrotation of the main shaft or feed in the axis line direction and toolautomatic change by tool breakage.

[0174] [Seventh Embodiment]

[0175] A seventh embodiment of the present invention will next bedescribed with reference to FIG. 14.

[0176]FIG. 14 is a schematic view of the product recovery apparatusaccording to the seventh embodiment of the present invention.

[0177] The same members and portions as those of the product recoveryapparatus 100 of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1 are denoted withthe same reference numerals, and the detailed description thereof isomitted.

[0178] The present invention is not limited to the main shaft movementtype of automatic lathe as described in the first embodiment, and canalso be applied to a main shaft fixed type of automatic lathe as shownin FIG. 14.

[0179] In the automatic lathe shown in FIG. 14, a head stock 2′ isattached to a column 7′, and a main shaft 1′ is rotatably supported bythe head stock 2′. Moreover, a tool rest 4′ which can move in X and Zdirections with respect to the main shaft 1′ is disposed, and aplurality of tools T such as the cutting tool and cut-off tool aremounted on the tool rest 4′ so that the tools are freely located.

[0180] In the automatic lathe shown in FIG. 14, a tube 101 freely moversforwards/backwards in the Z-axis direction, and a driving portion 150for moving the tube 101 forwards/backwards may be disposed.

[0181] The driving portion 150 includes a cylinder 151 attached to thefixing portion of the machine tool such as the table 5, and a supportmember 152 attached to a stretchable piston rod 151 a of the cylinder151. The tube 101 is attached to the support-member 152, and movesforwards/backwards in the Z-direction on the main shaft axis linetogether with the forward/backward movement of the piston rod 151 a bythe driving of the cylinder 151.

[0182] In this embodiment, simultaneously with the location of the toolfor cutting-off (see the step S13 of FIG. 6), the cylinder 151 is drivento extend the piston rod 151 a, and the tip end of the product W isinserted into the hole of the tube 101 as shown in FIG. 14(a). In thiscase, the tip end of the product W in the cutting-off processing can beinhibited from swinging. Moreover, as shown in FIG. 14(b), after theproduct W cut from the bar material B is recovered, the suction airgeneration means 103 is stopped (see the step S18 of FIG. 6) and thepiston rod 151 a is contracted/retreated.

[0183] It is to be noted that the above-described driving portion 150may also be disposed in the main shaft movement type of machine tool.FIG. 15 is a schematic view showing that the driving portion 150 isdisposed in the product recovery apparatus of the main shaft moving typeof machine tool.

[0184] In this case, during the processing of the product W, the tube101 can be retracted in the position apart from the processed portion.Therefore, there are advantages that the coolant and cut wastes R can beprevented from entering the hole of the tube 101 and that the amounts ofthe coolant and cut wastes R sucked together with the product W into therecovery container 120 at the air suction time can further be reduced.

[0185] When the tube 101 is in the retreated position, the tip end ofthe tube 101 is covered. When the tube 101 moves on the main shaft 1side, the tip end of the tube 101 is projected from the cover. In thisconstitution, the coolant and cut wastes R in the processing of theproduct W can be prevented from entering the hole of the tube 101.

[0186] Preferred embodiments of the present invention have beendescribed, but the present invention is not limited to theabove-described embodiments.

[0187] For example, the automatic lathe has been illustrated as oneexample of the machine tool to which the present invention is applied,but the present invention can be applied to not only the automatic lathebut also all types of machine tools such as another type of lathe and agrinding machine as long as the machine tool continuously processes theproduct from the material. Moreover, the present invention can also beapplied to all types of machine tools such as a vertical, lateral, mainshaft fixed, and main shaft moving types and to any type of machine toolincluding a turret tool rest and comb teeth-shaped tool rest.Furthermore, the present invention can be applied to machines other thanthe machine tools for performing cutting and grinding processing, suchas a machine for press processing, and a machine for performing pressurewelding processing to pressure-weld a plurality of parts into oneproduct.

[0188] Moreover, also for the automatic lathe, the present invention mayapplied to any type including the comb teeth-shaped tool rest or turrettool rest. Moreover, the main shaft axis line is not limited to alateral type of the horizontal direction, and the main shaft axis linemay be of a vertical type of the vertical direction.

[0189] Furthermore, the vacuum pump has been described as the example ofthe suction air generation means. However, as long as the suction aircan be generated, for example, compressed air is passed toward theoutside air from the air suction tube at high-speed to lower thepressure in the recovery container, and thereby air may be sucked fromthe product supply tube.

[0190] Additionally, the tube 101 formed separately from the productrecovery tube 102 and attached to the tip end of the product recoverytube 102 has been described, but one portion of the tip end of theproduct recovery tube 102 may linearly be formed to form a tubularportion.

[0191] Moreover, when the recovery container can be separated into thecontainer upper and lower parts as in the fifth and sixth embodiments,either the container upper part or the container lower part may freelymove upwards/downwards or move in the transverse direction, or both mayfreely move upwards/downwards or move in the transverse direction.Furthermore, in this case, the elevator means for moving the containerupper or lower part upwards/downwards is not limited to theabove-described means, and other elevator means may also be used using acam or ball screw/nut mechanism, linear motor, and the like.

[0192] Additionally, the locating/driving means for a plurality ofcontainer lower parts and product receivers as in the fourth and sixthembodiments is not limited to the above-described means, and otherdriving means such as a belt conveyor can be used, as long as thecontainer lower parts and product receivers can be located in thepredetermined positions.

[0193] Moreover, the fifth and sixth embodiments are constituted toforcibly push downwards the container lower part by the cylinder, butthe present invention is not limited to this constitution as long as itis possible to forcibly separate the container upper part from thecontainer lower part. For example, elastic means such as the spring maybe disposed between the container upper and lower parts, and thecontainer lower part may also be pushed downwards by a snapping force ofthis elastic means.

[0194] Since the present invention is constituted as described above,the product cut from the material such as the bar material can berecovered by the air suction in the form separated from the cut wastesand coolant. Moreover, since the recovery container is sealed, therecovered product is prevented from being flied/scattered outside therecovery container, and the recovery rate of the products can beenhanced.

[0195] Moreover, since the product recovery apparatus can beminiaturized and the recovery container is sealed, it is possible todispose the recovery container in the vicinity of the portion to beprocessed or in the processing chamber.

[0196] Furthermore, according to the product recovery apparatus andmethod of the present invention, it is possible to recover the productunder remarkably simple control.

INDUSTRIAL USABILITY

[0197] The present invention can be applied to all types of processingmachines for removing and recovering processed products from a mainshaft chuck and table. Moreover, for the products which can be recoveredby the apparatus and method of the present invention, various productcan be objects, when strength of suction air is changed. Particularly,the present invention is suitable for the recovery of small-sized andlight-weight products such as clock components and components ofportable electronic apparatuses.

1. A product recovery apparatus which recovers a product from a machinetool for processing a material held by material hold means to producethe product, comprising: a product recovery tube for receiving theproduct; suction air generation means for bringing the product into theproduct recovery tube by suction of air; and a recovery container of theproduct disposed between the suction air generation means and theproduct recovery tube.
 2. The product recovery apparatus according toclaim 1, wherein the recovery container has a sealable structure.
 3. Theproduct recovery apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein therecovery container includes a coolant reservoir portion in which acoolant is pooled.
 4. The product recovery apparatus according to claim3, wherein the coolant reservoir portion includes a discharge port ofthe coolant, and a valve for closing the discharge port at a suctiontime of air by the suction air generation means.
 5. The product recoveryapparatus according to claim 4, wherein the discharge port is formed ina side surface of the coolant reservoir portion, the valve includes avalve body for opening/closing the discharge port and a main body formovably holding the valve body, the valve body closes the discharge portwhen pressure inside the recovery container becomes lower than outsideair pressure by the suction of air, and the valve body opens thedischarge port by the coolant of the coolant reservoir portion, when thepressure in the recovery container becomes the same as or higher thanthe outside air pressure.
 6. The product recovery apparatus according toany one of claims 3 to 5, wherein the product recovered by the productrecovery tube is allowed to drop into the coolant pooled in the coolantreservoir portion.
 7. The product recovery apparatus according to anyone of claims 1 to 6, wherein a product receiver for receiving theproduct is disposed inside the recovery container, and the productreceiver can be taken out of the recovery container.
 8. The productrecovery apparatus according to claim 7, where the product receiver isformed of a perforated member via which small cut wastes can flow outfrom the product.
 9. The product recovery apparatus according to claim 7or 8, wherein at least one portion of a bottom of the product receiveris disposed apart from the bottom of the recovery container, and in cutwastes and dusts sucked together with the product, the cut wastes anddust smaller than the product are separated from the product, andprecipitated on the bottom of the recovery container.
 10. The productrecovery apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein theinside of the recovery container is formed in a cylindrical shape, andthe product recovery tube is disposed so that the product sucked via theproduct recovery tube collides with an inner wall of the recoverycontainer substantially from a tangent direction.
 11. The productrecovery apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein anair suction tube and the product recovery tube are connected to therecovery container so that an opening of the air suction tube connectedto the suction air generation means is positioned above the opening ofthe product recovery tube in the recovery container.
 12. The productrecovery apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein aroof portion of the recovery container is formed in an inclined shape.13. The product recovery apparatus according to claim 11, wherein a roofportion of the recovery container is formed in an inclined shape, andthe air suction tube is connected to a vertex side of the roof portion.14. The product recovery apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to13, wherein a tubular portion into which one portion of the product heldby the material hold means is inserted is formed in the tip end of theproduct recovery tube.
 15. The product recovery apparatus according toclaim 14, wherein at least one portion of the tubular portion is formedas a guide for inhibiting a free end of the product held by the materialhold means from swinging.
 16. The product recovery apparatus accordingto claim 14 or 15, wherein the tubular portion is disposed in such amanner that the tubular portion can move forwards/backwards with respectto the material.
 17. The product recovery apparatus according to claim16, further comprising: driving means for moving the tubular portionforwards/backwards and for inserting one portion of the product held bythe material hold means into the tubular portion before the suction forreceiving the product is performed.
 18. The product recovery apparatusaccording to claim 14, wherein the product is obtained by processing thematerial supplied to the material hold means from a front side, thetubular portion is driven by the driving means in a timing when theproduct is discharged from the hold means to approach the product, andone portion of the product is inserted into the tubular portion.
 19. Theproduct recovery apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the product isobtained by subjecting a bar material supplied to the material holdmeans from a back side to processing including cutting-off of theproduct from the bar material, the tubular portion is driven by thedriving means simultaneously with cutting-off processing for cutting theproduct from the bar material or in a predetermined timing after thecutting-off processing starts to approach the product, and one portionof the product is inserted into the tubular portion.
 20. The productrecovery apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 19, wherein therecovery container is formed of a container upper part and containerlower part, and the container upper part is connected to the air suctiontube and product recovery tube, so that the product is recovered in thecontainer lower part.
 21. The product recovery apparatus according toclaim 20, further comprising: the container lower part and containerupper part formed to be detachable from each other; elevator means forrelatively moving up and down the container lower part or containerupper part, and movement means for relatively moving the container lowerpart or container upper part in a transverse direction.
 22. The productrecovery apparatus according to claim 21, further comprising: aplurality of container lower parts; location means for relatively movingthe container lower parts or container upper part and locating one ofthe container lower parts under the container upper part; and elevatormeans for relatively moving up and down the container lower parts orcontainer upper part.
 23. The product recovery apparatus according toclaim 22, wherein the elevator means includes a portion to be engageddisposed in the container lower part, an engagement portion which isdisposed on a movement path of the portion to be engaged and which canbe engaged with the portion to be engaged at a location time of thecontainer lower part in the predetermined position, and a drivingmechanism for moving up or down the container lower part in a state inwhich the engagement portion is engaged with the portion to be engaged.24. The product recovery apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to20, further comprising: a plurality of the coolant reservoir portionsand/or the product receivers, and location means for moving and locatingthe coolant reservoir portions and/or the product receivers intopredetermined positions.
 25. The product recovery apparatus according toany one of claims 1 to 24, wherein the suction air generation means isoperated in a timing of start of cutting-off processing of the product,and is stopped after the cut-off product is recovered.
 26. A productrecovery method of relatively moving a tool and material to performprocessing, and recovering a processed product after the processingends, comprising the steps of: positioning a product recovery tube forrecovering the product by suction air opposite to the product beingprocessed; disposing a recovery container of the product between suctionair generation means for generating the suction air and the productrecovery tube; inserting one portion of the product into the productrecovery tube, when processing is performed to release the product fromthe material hold means or to cut the product from the material; drivingthe suction air generation means simultaneously with the start of therelease of the product from the hold means or the cutting-offprocessing, or in a predetermined timing after the cutting-offprocessing starts; and stopping the suction air generation means, afterthe product released from the hold means or the product cut from thematerial is recovered in the recovery container.
 27. The productrecovery method according to claim 26, further comprising the steps of:disposing air jet means for spouting compressed air to a tubular portionof the product recovery tube; spouting the compressed air into thesuction tube from the air jet means simultaneously with the stopping ofthe suction air generation means; raising air pressure in the recoverycontainer and opening a discharge port of a valve body to discharge thecoolant to the outside of the recovery container; and cleaning theinside of the product recovery tube with the compressed air.
 28. Theproduct recovery method according to claim 26 or 27, further comprisingthe steps of: disposing a coolant reservoir portion in the recoverycontainer; opening the discharge port disposed in the coolant reservoirportion to discharge the coolant, when the coolant pooled in the coolantreservoir portion exceeds a predetermined amount; and closing thedischarge port to hold airtightness of the recovery container bydifference pressure between pressure in the recovery container andoutside air pressure, when the suction air generation means is driven.29. The product recovery method according to any one of claims 26 to 28,further comprising the steps of: preparing a plurality of productreceivers for receiving the product in the recovery container so thatthe product receivers can move; locating the product receiver in apredetermined position by location means for operating based on aninstruction from control means; and continuously recovering the product.30. The product recovery method according to any one of claims 26 to 28,further comprising the steps of: constituting the recovery container ofa separable container upper part and container lower part: preparing aplurality of container lower parts; locating the container lower partsin predetermined positions with respect to the container upper part bylocation means for operating based on an instruction from control means;and continuously recovering the product.